Blood Moon (Paul Lahote)

Thirteen: Wolves

I wake up to the slamming of a door. I suspect it's the front door and I check for who went outside. I look out my window and Bella is pulling out of the driveway with her rust bucket of a truck. She pulls out quickly and takes off down the road. I walk downstairs to watch tv and Dad is getting ready with Harry to go hunt the wolves that are killing people in the woods.

"Where'd Bella go?" I ask him.

"She didn't say." He says. If she didn't tell Dad or I where she was going, she must've went to Jake's. Dad and Billy got into it after dinner last night, we both told her to stay away from his house for now. She probably didn't tell me that she was going either unless she was going to do something utterly stupid.

I rushed to my room and threw on some sweats and sandals. Bella doesn't have a phone so I leave mine at the house and I rush to my car and slam it while I pull out.

I slow down on the curves but on the way I'm going 80 mph to try and catch up with Bella. I get up to 90 as I'm almost there. I have to cross a railroad but the lights come on, I debate running it in my head but I'm too late and stop just before it passes.

When I pull up to Jake's house Bella is walking up to four shirtless guys in the middle of the field beside Jake's house. I quickly park my truck beside Bella's and sprint to catch up with her. The ground is dry and I get dirt in my socks while I run.

"He tells me nothing because he's scared of you!" She yells at one of the boys as I reach her. I keep my head down and don't look up, afraid I'll catch eyes with Em. I turn my backs to them and Bella reaches her hand out and slaps one across the face. I don't know what she was thinking but she's dumb as fuck.

"Bella what the fuck!" I yell and push her away from the guys. I hear snarling behind me and mixed commotion.

"Too late now." One teases. I grab Bella's shoulders and push her back as she stares at the guy she just slapped.

"Bella get back!" A deeper voice orders. I still keep my head away from Em's eyesight so I don't have to look at him. "Paul. Calm down now." I hear a loud snarl and the sound of ripping before I'm pushed back into the ground by a pair of familiar hands. They had pushed me farther enough away that I was no where near the huge grey wolf that was beside Bella.

It was crouched, ready to spring. The wolf's muzzle wrinkled back over his teeth, and another growl rolled through his colossal chest. His dark, enraged eyes focused on Bella. In the same second Jacob was running across the field, straight for the monster as Bella was running away.

"Run, Jake run!" She orders as she sprints, in one huge leap Jake dived headfirst into the empty air. One second it was Jacob diving into the air, and then it was the gigantic, russet brown wolf—so enormous that I couldn't make sense of its mass somehow fitting inside Jake—charging at the crouched silver beast.

Jake met the other werewolf's attack head-on. Their angry snarls echoed like thunder off the trees.
The black and white scraps—the remains of Jake's clothes—fluttered to the ground where he'd disappeared.

I watched, frozen, as the two gigantic wolves disappeared fought. My breathing is unsteady and my hands are shaking. There is a huge lump in my throat that I try to swallow.

"Jacob!" Bella screamed again, staggering forward.

"Stay where you are, Bella," The leader ordered. It was hard to hear him over the roar of the fighting wolves. They were snapping and tearing at each other, their sharp teeth flashing toward each other's throats.

The Jacob-wolf seemed to have the upper hand—he was visibly bigger than the other wolf, and it looked like he was stronger, too. He rammed his shoulder against the gray wolf again and again, knocking him back toward the trees.